The Beatings hail from Brooklyn via Boston, Massachusets.
The Beatings make rock n’ roll reminiscent of Sonic Youth, Pixies, and Mission of Burma.The great Paul Q. Kolderie (Pixies, Hole, Radiohead) helped produce their latest album “Holding on to Hand Grenades.”
It’s a 16-track, punk-rock tinged album. Vocalists Tony Skalicky and Eldridge Rodriquez have all the bases covered for a great post-punk vocal sound…from Joy Division-esque droning to Frank Black like “yelping”. Bassist Erin Dalbec and drummer Dennis Grabowski complete the sound, and Erin even lends her vocals towards the end of the album on the songs “Scorched-Earth Policy” and “Pennsyltuckey.”
Highlights of the album include tracks “Feel Good Ending”, “This City is Killing Me”, “Stockholm Syndrome Relapse”, and “Burn Down the Jungle.” Off-the-hook screamer “Remedial Math Rock” is another song where The Beatings show their true potential…which lies in their classic post-punk influenced sound.
But for all of the great moments on the album, I can help but think that it should have been 2-3 tracks shorter. “Harry’s Wild Ride”, “Oh Shit My Phaser’s Jammed”, and “Don’t Flake Now” (while charming that it is) don’t quite fit with the rest of the songs. Those songs are shorter, mellower, and a bit more of a departure from that harder sound on the rest of the album.
Overall, fans of Mission of Burma, Sonic Youth, and Pixies should find this album excessable and amusing.
Score: 7/10
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The Beatings – This City Is Killing Me
[audio:https://www.obscuresound.com/brandon/music/03%20-%20This%20City%20Is%20Killing%20Me.mp3]———————————————
The Beatings – Stockholm Syndrome Relapse
[audio:https://www.obscuresound.com/brandon/music/06%20-%20Stockholm%20Syndrome%20Relapse.mp3]
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Interesting how you skipped Upstate Flashbacks – a real gem on the album.